Sleep and Stay Young Longer

Did you know that getting enough sleep could actually lengthen our lives?

It is true.  Recent studies show that sleep plays a very important part in lengthening our lives. 

Sleep is initiated by specialized areas in the brain. Certain brain areas are also responsible for wakefulness.

There are various stages of sleep which are defined by body motions as well as by the character of the electrical activity in the brain. The typical patterns of electrical activity for the phases of sleep vary with age.

Moreover, the number of hours we sleep is also crucial in promoting the longevity of our lives.  Although there are many contradicting studies and recommendation for the number of sleep that the human body needs, majority of the studies show that the old belief that we need eight of sleep to function well is no longer true.  In fact, recent researches suggest sleeping for more than six hours but less than eight hours is today’s ideal.  Calculating from that, it generally falls down to seven hours of sleep per night. 

Sleep is actually defined as a natural body function during which we are relatively unconscious and the muscles that we normally control are relaxed. The result of sleep is the refreshing of the nervous system (including the brain) and of the muscles. 

Sleep plays a central role in everyone's life. Sleeping is very essential for our well- being. Sleep restores our physical and mental energy.  The body repairs itself while we sleep.  It detoxifies and heals.  Nowadays, we are becoming a sleep-deprived society and this fact is wrecking havoc on our mental and physical health. Lack of sleep can be as dangerous to your health as smoking. 

Lack of sleep presents many dangers that could lessen our mortality, experts said.  The obvious reason behind this lies to the fact that with lack of sleep, physical- productivity is impaired.  Fatigue and a compromised immune system will leave you vulnerable to disease, infection, colds and other diseases.

Lack of sleep may also impair your safety-judgment, make you less aware and alert which will ultimately lead you to accidents.

Over time, a lack of sleep can also lead to a higher mortality rate due to higher risk of cardiovascular disease, and higher blood pressure. 

Take my word for it.  Do not take sleep for granted.  Your body needs rest. Problems and anxieties will not go away on their own and not sleeping might actually render you incapable to deal with them at all.